Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey

Cricket fanaticism in Australia is certainly in-line with what we feel in India. The emotion runs high, every child picks up a bat as an infant, and a huge crowd the MCG on Boxing Day to headline the Australian summer (although very unlikely to be the case this year due to the pandemic).

The culture of the Australian team might have changed post Sandpapergate and the huge media backlash on the ‘win at all cost’ mindset, but the Aussie intent and the hunger to win is still intact.

In the summer of 2018-19, Virat Kohli’s troops had conquered the Australian soil for the first time ever, winning the series 2-1. Knowing the nature of the Aussies, they would be seething. They take great pride in the baggy green and are not known to let go of a loss. That too at home.

That loss left deep scars in Australia’s memory. Apart from Perth, India dominated the series in all three departments. To sum up Australia’s agony, not a single batsman was able to score a century in the 4-match Test series. It was an abject surrender from the home side.

Those wounds are still fresh and the Aussies are hungry to go for the kill against India this summer. They were without their two best batsmen last time around, but now they have the ammunition to reverse the equation against a strong team like India.

The experience of Smith and Warner at the top, talented youngsters like Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head to handle the middle order and a solid mind in a captain like Tim Paine. They have a well-settled bowling line-up with the likes of Cummins, Hazlewood, and Starc and undoubtedly the best spinner in the current generation, Nathan Lyon. The perfect recipe for success. Call it revenge, redemption or retribution, the Australians would come out all guns blazing in the 1st Test at Brisbane. 

India lost a series each in England and South Africa in 2018. Now the team is under some heavy scrutiny after their recent drubbing in New Zealand. With Australia looking stronger than ever, this will be one of the most challenging series for India and Virat Kohli. One that might define Kohli – ‘The Captain’.

Cricket Australia has confirmed the series to go ahead as scheduled and a lot is at stake for both teams when they lock horns this December. Here’s a look at all the big challenges and the battles to watch out for in the tour down under.

1. India’s 1st Away D/N Test

“We’ll ask Virat and see if we can get his permission to play at Brisbane and also play a D/N Test”, replied Tim Paine to a reporter’s question, taking a sly jibe at his Indian counterpart. Kohli is someone who doesn’t back away from challenges. As per the schedule released by Cricket Australia, India would be playing the first Test at Brisbane, a venue where Australia has not lost at since 1988.

The second Test will be D/N and would be played in Adelaide. The Indian team is pretty inexperienced when it comes to playing under lights and has played only a solitary Test, that too at home against Bangladesh. Playing the pink-ball Test in Australia would be a different beast altogether for Kohli and Co. It’ll be interesting to see how the Indian batsmen tackle the moving ball against a strong Australian pace line-up.

2. Virat Kohli Vs Steve Smith

Steve Smith recently said the upcoming Australia-India series has the potential to be one of the all-time great series. Well said.

The battle between Smith and Kohli will be a beauty. Kohli is certainly the best batsman across all three formats, but Smith pips him when it comes to the Test format. Smith, often touted as the next Bradman, has 26 centuries to his name at a staggering average of 62.84.

This battle had lost voice post the Sandpapergate, but is now reignited after Smith’s fantastic comeback to Test cricket in the Ashes last year. Smith also regained the No. 1 place in the Test batting ranking even after a 1-yr exodus from cricket.

The pressure would be on Kohli to prove a point. Also, Kohli is going through a bit of rough patch with a total of just 38 runs in four innings against New Zealand. He has now gone 22 innings without scoring a hundred. Kohli’s 123 in Perth in 2018 remains his last Test hundred on an overseas tour. He would be hungry to get some runs under his belt and make a statement.

Especially against an opposition like Australia.

Also read: Steve Smith talks about Australia-India Test series

3. Battle for the ICC No. 1 Test ranking

Just recently, Australia replaced India at the helm of the ICC Test cricket rankings. India had held this position since 2016, but have now dropped to the third place after their stupendous 2016-17 record was eliminated from the annual update.

Australia benefited from their recent wins against England in the Ashes and New Zealand at home, while India suffered a 2-0 drubbing against the Kiwis. It’s been quite a turnaround from Australia, considering that the team was in shambles after the ban on Smith and Warner and didn’t even know their Test playing XI. Now, the No. 1 ranking would again be up for grabs when India face the Australians this summer.

4. World Test Championship

If everything goes as planned, the top two teams in the points table of the Test championship will be playing the Final in June 2021 at Lord’s. Currently, India stands at 360 points, while Australia is at a total of 296 points.

India is left with a home series against England, which they are expected to win. Australia will have an uphill task as they tour South Africa for the first time after the infamous ball-tampering incident. Australia also has a tour of Bangladesh, which is yet to be rescheduled.

This will more be a challenge for Australia. They’ll have to achieve a great result in this series if they have to finish at the top. With 120 points up for the taking, this series could be the decider of who cements their place of playing the Final at Lord’s.

Ravi Shastri had said in a press conference in 2018 that this is India’s best traveling side in 15 years. Not a lot of people were amused by this statement, but the Indian team had the numbers and ranking by their side. Now, India has slipped to No. 3 and is also in danger of dropping down in the points table of the ICC Test championship. It’ll be interesting to see how the much-touted Indian Test team responds to a recent blip in their success when they tour down under.

Written by Parth Gera. Follow Parth on Twitter today.